Sortation into volume-adjustable containers
AssigneeLaitram, L.L.C.
InventorsMark Costanzo, Bryant G. Ragan, Christopher Alan Brupbacher, Destin Jacob Bailey
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A sorting conveyor system sorting parcels into volume-adjustable containers with movable floors and an associated method for adjusting the depth of the container's interior volume. The containers are mounted on carts and have movable floors that are raised and lowered to decrease and increase the depth of the container's interior volume below an upper rim as a function of the load of parcels in the container.
Claims30
A cart for receiving parcels, comprising:
- a base;
- a frame upstanding from the base;
- a container supported by the frame and having a lower floor and an upper rim bounding a mouth opening into an interior volume between the upper rim and the lower floor;
- a mover attached to the floor to move the floor toward or away from the upper rim to adjust the depth of the interior volume of the container.
A conveyor system for sorting parcels, comprising:
- a diverting conveyor conveying parcels along its length;
- a plurality of discharges having entrance and exit ends and disposed along one or both sides of the diverting conveyor at spaced apart discharge locations along the length of the diverting conveyor to receive parcels diverted from the diverting conveyor over the entrance end and discharge the parcels off the exit end;
- a plurality of carts positioned proximate the exit ends of the discharges to receive parcels discharged from the discharges over the exit ends, wherein the carts each include a container having an upper rim and a lower floor that is movable to adjust the depth of an interior volume of the container as a function of the volume of parcels in the container.
A method for adjusting the depth of an interior volume of a container receiving parcels, comprising:
- positioning a container having a movable lower floor and an upper rim suspended from a frame to receive parcels from the conveyor into an interior volume of the container;
- adjusting the distance of the floor from the rim to set the depth of the interior volume as a function of the load of parcels in the container.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.